RADIO FREE EUROPE/ RADIO LIBERTY: U.S.: 'Fahrenheit 9/11' Fans Political Controversy

RADIO FREE EUROPE/ RADIO LIBERTY: "Prague, 25 June 2004 (RFE/RL) -- Depending on whom you ask, Michael Moore's film is either an honest portrayal of the facts behind the Bush administration's foreign policy or a smear campaign to hasten Bush's departure from the White House.

'Fahrenheit 9/11' is generating major controversy as Americans decide whether to vote for Bush or Democratic rival John Kerry in November elections. It opens today in 700 cinemas across America -- an unprecedented number for a documentary.

Using stock footage, interviews, and commentary, the two-hour movie depicts Bush as lazy and oblivious to warnings ahead of the 11 September 2001 attacks on America that Al-Qaeda was ready to strike. A similar allegation was made recently by Richard Clarke, Bush's former counterterrorism chief, and denied by White House officials"